Keeping California's Courthouse Doors Open The Center, representing ten organizations serving low-income consumers, workers, tenants, and the elderly, has filed a brief in Askins v. CRST, fighting to ensure that California state courts remain accessible. Read more here: bit.ly/Askins

Highlights from last week's Consumer Law Conference

Berkeley Law in the @newyorker.com: Article on C.F.P.B. recalls a @ucbconsumerlaw.bsky.social event "full of aspiring lawyers lured by free burritos" where Senior Fellows @srf1802.bsky.social & @saalevine.bsky.social discussed the "spectre of freewheeling fintech." www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

Are you paying more than your neighbor for the same product? Corporations are using AI & data harvesting to charge different customers different prices — and most people have no idea it's happening. It's called personalized algorithmic pricing. Read our full comment: rebrand.ly/FTCAIcomment

Consumer Protection Win in Oregon! Oregon consumer advocates defeated an industry bill, HB 4141, that aimed to gut Oregon's strong consumer protections against predatory debt settlement products. Read testimony here: rebrand.ly/ORHB4141 #ConsumerProtection

The Center filed an amicus brief for NTEU vs Vought, a case challenging efforts by Acting Director Vought and the Trump Administration to shutter the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Read brief here: bit.ly/46DoEys

The CFPB was created after predatory lending wiped out $11 TRILLION in household wealth. Now the Trump Administration is trying to shut it down—letting banks off the hook while consumers lose protections. Read amicus brief by advocates to the full D.C. Circuit pushing back: bit.ly/46DoEys

Big win for consumers in California. Courts just ruled that breaking the law is enough to sue — even without proving damages. That keeps courthouse doors open and stops corporations from dodging accountability. A major step forward for economic justice. bit.ly/4rwh0Ot

Big step from the FTC 👏 Reopening the #ClickToCancel rule + launching action on rental junk fees = real relief for consumers tired of hidden fees and subscription traps. We continue to work on behalf of organizations urging the #FTC & #CFPB to #ProtectConsumers: bit.ly/4k86vyg

Win for #Consumers & #FederalWorkers. A court ordered CFPB Dir Vought to keep the CFPB funded & he complied. Last year, the Center, @tzedekdc.bsky.social, and @borrowerjustice.bsky.social filed amicus briefs on behalf of 40+ orgs warning that dismantling the agency is unlawful and unconstitutional.

We’re celebrating Sam Levine’s appointment to lead @hellodcwp.bsky.social Dept. of Consumer & Worker Protection! As Senior Fellow, Sam battled junk fees & predatory traps and pushed for economic justice for families. NYC just got a powerhouse consumer champion.

Air Travelers Beware! @saalevine urges DOT to withdraw proposed rule that would add hurdles to policing unfair/deceptive practices—including hidden fees, refund abuses, & surveillance pricing. Comment supported by Julian Sanghvi & David S. Nahmias. bit.ly/DOT753

Check out @srf1802.bsky.social's guest essay in the @nytopinion.nytimes.com about protecting working people and their families from economic abuse: t.co/O7rfi7TUu3

Former general counsel of the CFPB, Seth Frotman (@srf1802.bsky.social), examines how federal government lawyers can help ensure that laws are faithfully administered to address contemporary challenges. Read MLR Online's latest publication here: michiganlawreview.org/the-federal-...

Giving Trump unbridled power to fire economic regulators puts everyday Americans at risk. The FTC exists to serve the public—not corporate profit, but a ruling in Trump’s favor will turn it into a weapon against political opponents. More: bit.ly/3Xyo9Ri #SCOTUS #ConsumerProtection

Last week, Center Senior Fellow @saalevine.bsky.social and Stephanie Nguyen, Senior Fellow at the Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator, joined the Organized Money Podcast to discuss their new paper, The Loyalty Trap: How Loyalty Programs Hook Us with Deals, Hack Our Brains, and Hike Our Prices.

Stronger Consumer Protections for D.C. Today, @saalevine.bsky.social & David Nahmias urged the D.C. Council to reform the CPPA to protect residents from deceptive & exploitative practices. #ConsumerProtection #CPPA

“You’ve Been Served” — fairly. Gov. Newsom has signed AB 747 (SPARE Act), authored by Assemblymember Ash Kalra (D–San José) & developed by UC Berkeley’s Center for Consumer Law & Economic Justice. It’s the first statewide modernization of service of process in the nation — a win for fairness.

CA steps up as federal #ConsumerProtection is stalled. Last week, @cagovernornewsom.bsky.social signed SB 825 by Sen. Monique Limón and Tim Grayson into law. This law enhances and clarifies the CA DFPI authority to enforce consumer protection laws. #ConsumerProtection Read more bit.ly/DFPIbill

This week, @governor.ca.gov signed AB 325 (Majority Leader Cecilia Aguiar-Curry) — The Preventing Algorithmic Price Fixing Act — making California the first state in the nation to explicitly outlaw algorithmic collusion that inflates the cost of essentials like housing and groceries.

This week, @governor.ca.gov signed SB 766 — the Combating Auto Retail Scams (CARS) Act— into law. Sponsored by Sen. Ben Allen with support from Professor Ted Mermin, Senior Fellow Sam Levine, and others, SB 766 strengthens protections for Californians buying or leasing vehicles.

Amicus brief warns that the Administration’s move to dismantle the @CFPB is unlawful and dangerous. The CFPB is America’s safeguard against financial scams and predatory lenders—protecting veterans, servicemembers, older adults & families.

Yesterday, @agdanrayfield.bsky.social brought together six attorneys general and national thought leaders for a roundtable on the urgent challenges facing consumers and workers. With federal protections under threat, strong state-level protections and enforcement are more critical than ever.

New fact sheet from the Center for Responsible Lending: Student loan borrower protections are under threat. 2025 changes mean higher costs, fewer safeguards, & more uncertainty for millions. Read more 👉 https://loom.ly/wnNELgw #StudentDebt #HigherEd

Thank you @econaction.bsky.social for gathering community leaders and legislators today to fight for an affordability agenda. Rohit Chopra delivered a powerful keynote including calling out payday loan apps. #PaydayLoanApps #DebtTrap

@saalevine.bsky.social testified before NYC’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection in support of banning hotel junk fees. Backed by research from Mia Machado + public comment with CLASS & law school chapters at Berkeley, Fordham, St. John’s & NYU. bit.ly/482iIkq #ConsumerProtection #JunkFees

246 law students & recent grads from 23 law schools — along with CLASS Network, @peoplesparity.bsky.social & NPLA — are strongly opposing the Dept. of Ed’s proposed changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. bit.ly/SavePSLF #PSLF #StudentLoanForgiveness

Big Win for the Latino Community: The Center applauds the CA Court of Appeal’s decision in People v. Adir (Curacao). The message is clear: companies cannot profit by preying on immigrant communities. #ConsumerProtection #LatinosInCalifornia

Win for consumers! California court rules that violation of #ConsumerProtection laws is all that's needed to bring a case. No restrictive federal standing standards for CA state court. Doors to the courthouse remain open. #ConsumerRights

FTC Issues Much-Anticipated Junk Fees Rule, Citing Center's Comment 10 Times consumerlaw.berkeley.edu/news/ftc-iss...

ICYMI: have a look our 2024 annual report! consumerlaw.berkeley.edu/sites/defaul...